Donna VanLiere

Denounced by her 1950 Tennessee community as an old maid, 30-something Ivorie Walker hides her loneliness and grief over her mother's death behind good-humored independence before advocating on behalf of a feral boy who has been stealing vegetables from her garden.

While shopping for gifts on Christmas Eve, Robert, a successful lawyer whose family life is falling apart, meets Nathan, an eight-year-old boy whose mother is dying.

"In June 1972, John Creighton determines to build his wife Joan a kitchen table. His largest project to date had been picture frames but he promises to have the table ready for Thanksgiving dinner. Inspired to put something delicious on the table, Joan turns to her mother's recipes she had given to Joan when she and John married. In June 2012, Lauren Mabrey discovers she's pregnant. Gloria, Miriam, and the rest of her friends at Glory's Place begin...

Thirty-two-year-old Amy Denison volunteers at Glory's Place, an after school program where she meets seven-year-old Maddie, a precocious young girl who has spent her childhood in foster care. Unbeknownst to Amy, Maddie is a mini-matchmaker, with her eye on just the right man for Amy at Grandon Elementary School, where she is a student. Amy is hesitant - she's been hurt before, and isn't sure she's ready to lose her heart again - but an unexpected...

Relocating to an apartment with her two children to be closer to her mother, Gretchen offers to help clear out the home of a reclusive neighbor's recently deceased mother and discovers that the neighbor, Melissa, has two siblings and an identity that she never suspected.

In 1947, the small town of Morgan Hill, Tennessee, and the lives of its inhabitants are turned upside down by the arrival of the Turners, the area's first black family.

"In the small town of Grandon, five very different people discover the true meaning of Christmas. Jennifer and Ryan are both single parents, struggling with their own losses and heartache. Sixteen-year-old Kaylee is faced with a life-changing situation that has affected her whole family. Stephen and Lily are happily married and ready to start a family. All of them are facing their own struggles, and all are finding their way through the dark. When...

"In this gripping follow-up to The Time of Jacob's Trouble, bestselling author Donna VanLiere explores the end-times prophecies in the journeys of Emma, Zerah, and others who cling to hope even as danger closes in and civilization crumbles on an unprecedented scale"--Provided by publisher.

A typical day at the rehabilitation center turns into a nightmare for Emma Grady when her favorite physical therapy patient vanishes in front of her, along with several colleagues. Fear turns to chaos as Emma begins the frantic race from Brooklyn to Queens, anxious to discover if her boyfriend is safe. Subways are closed, graves are open, and countless people have inexplicably disappeared. Mayhem erupts as terror grips the residents of New York City....

When lives intertwine during Christmas, hope is the one unifying gift. Family comes in many forms. It's through the love of one little girl that the lives of many are brought together during what turns out to be a most joyful time of the year.